Hossam Badrawi Official Website
A renewed view of the pillars of Islam
Written by Dr. Hossam Badrawi
One of the young dreamers of tomorrow asked me about the five pillars of Islam, and where did they come from?
I told him: What was termed “the pillars of Islam” did not appear in the Qur’anic text written between the two covers of the Mushaf, and this was something strange to me.
It was stated in Lisan Al-Arab that the corner of a thing is its strongest side
The question is: Why were the pillars of Islam not clearly stated in the Holy Qur’an, despite them being basic pillars of the religion?! If the Holy Qur’an consists of about six thousand two hundred verses, then don’t the pillars of Islam deserve to be presented, or to allocate one or more verses of the Holy Qur’an to it?
If the backbone of Islam and the first source of legislation is the Holy Qur’an, which is the most reliable compared to the texts of the hadiths of the Prophet, then why did the pillars of Islam not appear in a clear statement, which are the sources of the strength of religion?
This designation – the five pillars of Islam – came based on a famous hadith attributed to our master Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, by Ibn Omar: (Islam is built on five: bearing witness that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is the Messenger of God, and establishing prayer and the payment of zakat Hajj, and fasting Ramadan) Bukhari included it in his Sahih, as well as Muslim. As we understand it, with the exception of monotheism, the rest of the pillars are rituals and are not the content of understanding the religion
On the other hand, there are dozens of hadiths attributed to him, peace and blessings be upon him, and attributed to the same references, which do not mention the five items in full, and suffice with only two, three, or four of them.
On the other hand, the majority of Shiite Muslims believe in the five pillars of Islam, but the Shiites add to it the element of guardianship as an indispensable basis for the validity of religion, and once again it is a political addition to rituals and does not affect the content of Islam.
In a saying attributed to Abu Jaafar in the book Al-Kafi: “Islam was built on five: prayer, zakat, fasting, pilgrimage, and guardianship, and nothing was called for as the guardianship was called for, so people took four, and left these.” It means the state (meaning politics, governance and authority).
There is also another formula about the three pillars of Islam, a formula that excludes Hajj and fasting from the five pillars
And according to some Ismaili Shiite Muslims, religion is based on seven pillars, or what is called the seven pillars, which are: guardianship – purity – prayer – zakat – fasting – pilgrimage – jihad.
We conclude from this that the problem of determining the number of pillars of Islam, and defining the nature of these pillars, is a Sunni and Shiite problem as well, and is not limited to a specific school of thought.
As for the Mu’tazila, they agreed on five fundamentals of Islam: monotheism, justice, the position between the two levels, promise and threat, and enjoining good and forbidding evil. Judge Abd al-Jabbar, who is one of the prominent figures of the Mu’tazila, in his book (Al-Mughni) relied on two principles, which are justice and monotheism, as he included everything else in them.
With logic and reason, I see prayer, despite its importance, its goal is man, not God Almighty. God does not need our prayers, but rather we who need our prayers. We performed them in any way in all religions, as they are moments of communication with God Almighty, which distances us from material things, enriches our souls and refines our souls.
It is clear from the foregoing that what is described as the five pillars of Islam is a jurisprudential jurisprudence that was adopted from among several opinions and jurisprudences, which are justified in the texts of the Holy Qur’an.
Now comes diligence, development and consideration of all humanity and what it has evolved into. What prevents the existence of other formulations of the pillars of the Islamic faith, which adhere to the priorities of modern life such as justice, freedom and human rights? Humanity and common sense are the greatest common denominator among people, including Muslims. Why don’t we look for human commonalities and meet all of humanity in what our religion calls for at the same time? We will not need to cancel the Arab-Islamic dimension
What is required is a new understanding that liberates us, Muslims, from the chronic shortcomings in which we live, and the inertia of civilization that we are accustomed to. What prevents the establishment of the Islamic faith on pillars and foundations that are commensurate with development, the state of the age, the aspirations of man and the societies in which Muslims live, which are found in the origin and words of the Holy Qur’an?
The sacred texts came to remind man of the instinct of life, justice and freedom, which is an instinct present and valid in people, prior to the time of texts and religions.
And it came in a hadith attributed to the Prophet Muhammad: “I have been sent to perfect morals.”
The sacred texts vary in goodness and righteousness, according to the text of the Noble Qur’an itself: “And follow the best of what has been sent down to you from your Lord before the punishment overtakes you suddenly while you are not disturbed.” Aroun Al-Zumar.
Choosing the most appropriate one in reference to people’s interests is a duty and a good
Why is the priority of life not one of the pillars of Islam? And it came in the text of the Qur’an: “He who kills a soul without killing a soul or spreading corruption in the land, it is as if he killed all people, and whoever saves a life, it is as if he Long live all mankind, and our messengers came to them with clear proofs, and after that many of them in the land are extravagant.” Al-Ma’idah.
Why is justice not one of the pillars of Islam? And God Almighty says: “O you who have believed! Be upright and upright for God, bearers of witness with justice. It is nearer to piety, and fear God. Indeed, God is Aware of what you do.” An-Nisa’.
We note the wording of the divine command in “Indeed, God enjoins justice, kindness, and giving to relatives, and He forbids indecency, evil, and transgression, admonishing you to Perhaps you will remember.”
Written by Dr. Hossam Badrawi
One of the young dreamers of tomorrow asked me about the five pillars of Islam, and where did they come from?
I told him: What was termed “the pillars of Islam” did not appear in the Qur’anic text written between the two covers of the Mushaf, and this was something strange to me.
It was stated in Lisan Al-Arab that the corner of a thing is its strongest side
The question is: Why were the pillars of Islam not clearly stated in the Holy Qur’an, despite them being basic pillars of the religion?! If the Holy Qur’an consists of about six thousand two hundred verses, then don’t the pillars of Islam deserve to be presented, or to allocate one or more verses of the Holy Qur’an to it?
If the backbone of Islam and the first source of legislation is the Holy Qur’an, which is the most reliable compared to the texts of the hadiths of the Prophet, then why did the pillars of Islam not appear in a clear statement, which are the sources of the strength of religion?
This designation – the five pillars of Islam – came based on a famous hadith attributed to our master Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, by Ibn Omar: (Islam is built on five: bearing witness that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is the Messenger of God, and establishing prayer and the payment of zakat Hajj, and fasting Ramadan) Bukhari included it in his Sahih, as well as Muslim. As we understand it, with the exception of monotheism, the rest of the pillars are rituals and are not the content of understanding the religion
On the other hand, there are dozens of hadiths attributed to him, peace and blessings be upon him, and attributed to the same references, which do not mention the five items in full, and suffice with only two, three, or four of them.
On the other hand, the majority of Shiite Muslims believe in the five pillars of Islam, but the Shiites add to it the element of guardianship as an indispensable basis for the validity of religion, and once again it is a political addition to rituals and does not affect the content of Islam.
In a saying attributed to Abu Jaafar in the book Al-Kafi: “Islam was built on five: prayer, zakat, fasting, pilgrimage, and guardianship, and nothing was called for as the guardianship was called for, so people took four, and left these.” It means the state (meaning politics, governance and authority).
There is also another formula about the three pillars of Islam, a formula that excludes Hajj and fasting from the five pillars
And according to some Ismaili Shiite Muslims, religion is based on seven pillars, or what is called the seven pillars, which are: guardianship – purity – prayer – zakat – fasting – pilgrimage – jihad.
We conclude from this that the problem of determining the number of pillars of Islam, and defining the nature of these pillars, is a Sunni and Shiite problem as well, and is not limited to a specific school of thought.
As for the Mu’tazila, they agreed on five fundamentals of Islam: monotheism, justice, the position between the two levels, promise and threat, and enjoining good and forbidding evil. Judge Abd al-Jabbar, who is one of the prominent figures of the Mu’tazila, in his book (Al-Mughni) relied on two principles, which are justice and monotheism, as he included everything else in them.
With logic and reason, I see prayer, despite its importance, its goal is man, not God Almighty. God does not need our prayers, but rather we who need our prayers. We performed them in any way in all religions, as they are moments of communication with God Almighty, which distances us from material things, enriches our souls and refines our souls.
It is clear from the foregoing that what is described as the five pillars of Islam is a jurisprudential jurisprudence that was adopted from among several opinions and jurisprudences, which are justified in the texts of the Holy Qur’an.
Now comes diligence, development and consideration of all humanity and what it has evolved into. What prevents the existence of other formulations of the pillars of the Islamic faith, which adhere to the priorities of modern life such as justice, freedom and human rights? Humanity and common sense are the greatest common denominator among people, including Muslims. Why don’t we look for human commonalities and meet all of humanity in what our religion calls for at the same time? We will not need to cancel the Arab-Islamic dimension
What is required is a new understanding that liberates us, Muslims, from the chronic shortcomings in which we live, and the inertia of civilization that we are accustomed to. What prevents the establishment of the Islamic faith on pillars and foundations that are commensurate with development, the state of the age, the aspirations of man and the societies in which Muslims live, which are found in the origin and words of the Holy Qur’an?
The sacred texts came to remind man of the instinct of life, justice and freedom, which is an instinct present and valid in people, prior to the time of texts and religions.
And it came in a hadith attributed to the Prophet Muhammad: “I have been sent to perfect morals.”
The sacred texts vary in goodness and righteousness, according to the text of the Noble Qur’an itself: “And follow the best of what has been sent down to you from your Lord before the punishment overtakes you suddenly while you are not disturbed.” Aroun Al-Zumar.
Choosing the most appropriate one in reference to people’s interests is a duty and a good
Why is the priority of life not one of the pillars of Islam? And it came in the text of the Qur’an: “He who kills a soul without killing a soul or spreading corruption in the land, it is as if he killed all people, and whoever saves a life, it is as if he Long live all mankind, and our messengers came to them with clear proofs, and after that many of them in the land are extravagant.” Al-Ma’idah.
Why is justice not one of the pillars of Islam? And God Almighty says: “O you who have believed! Be upright and upright for God, bearers of witness with justice. It is nearer to piety, and fear God. Indeed, God is Aware of what you do.” An-Nisa’.
We note the wording of the divine command in “Indeed, God enjoins justice, kindness, and giving to relatives, and He forbids indecency, evil, and transgression, admonishing you to Perhaps you will remember.”
Why is freedom, including freedom of belief, right up to freedom of faith and disbelief, not one of the pillars of the Islamic faith? And it came in the Qur’an: “There is no compulsion in religion. Righteousness is distinguished from error. So whoever disbelieves in the tyrant and believes in God has grasped the handle.” The most intimate bonds cannot be broken, and God is All-Hearing, All-Knowing.” Al-Baqara.
Forcing a person to believe in a specific belief came in the place of censure in the Qur’an: “And if your Lord had willed, everyone on earth would have believed together. Nin, Yunus
So, with logic and reason, the pillars of Islam are not only sentences and some verbs chosen by the jurists, but rather we can add to them from the heart of the Qur’an what is compatible with the true religion and agrees with humanity and what it has evolved into. We do not take anything away from Islam from what the predecessors understood, and we add to it what unites humanity and all religions in an agreed-upon content that we have clearly found in the Qur’an.
Therefore, after my research on the reference of the five pillars of Islam, I rationally do not reject them, but rather add to them: freedom to choose, justice, honesty, equality, and doing good.
In the reverse logic, Islam rejects: lies and betrayal, inequality and enslavement, doing evil and causing harm
Whoever does it does not follow the Islam that I believe in, just as he is like the one who does not fast, the one who does not perform Hajj, and the one who does not cite martyrdom, pray, or give alms tax.
And we all know that there are those who pray, steal and curse, and those who pay alms with one hand and bribe with another, and those who fast in form and do not believe in what they say and backbite others, and they are all Muslims before us, and we may consider them adhering to the five pillars of Islam, but we also know that their reckoning is with their Lord.
So why do we not increase the pillars of what the Qur’an mentioned over and over again regarding the importance of honesty, trustworthiness, love, justice and equality?
I add that the numerical statistics in the Holy Qur’an confirm that the remembrance of God Almighty has come 2699 times, and that the most mentioned number in the Qur’an is number one.
Although the testimony that there is no god but God has been mentioned 37 times, and the name of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, 5 times, the prayer has been mentioned 67 times,
Zakat 32 times, fasting 14 times, and Hajj 13 times. And to clarify my point of view, justice has been mentioned 28 times, honesty 153 times, life 145 times, reward and its derivatives 117 times, and forgiveness and its derivatives 234 times. Likewise, God has rejected injustice 200 times in His Noble Qur’an.
I have noticed that the most mentioned moral values in the Qur’an are: honesty, trustworthiness, courage, humility, loyalty, modesty, chastity, forbearance, patience, justice, benevolence, mercy, honoring one’s parents, upholding ties of kinship, honoring one’s neighbor, tolerance, altruism, Cooperation in righteousness and piety
Perhaps what I mentioned and researched makes the reader agree with me that the pillars of Islam are compatible with the growth of human civilization, and do not depend on what the previous ones concluded only, and that it is possible for all mankind, but all religions, to participate in it without sensitivity or intolerance.
Forcing a person to believe in a specific belief came in the place of censure in the Qur’an: “And if your Lord had willed, everyone on earth would have believed together. Nin, Yunus
So, with logic and reason, the pillars of Islam are not only sentences and some verbs chosen by the jurists, but rather we can add to them from the heart of the Qur’an what is compatible with the true religion and agrees with humanity and what it has evolved into. We do not take anything away from Islam from what the predecessors understood, and we add to it what unites humanity and all religions in an agreed-upon content that we have clearly found in the Qur’an.
Therefore, after my research on the reference of the five pillars of Islam, I rationally do not reject them, but rather add to them: freedom to choose, justice, honesty, equality, and doing good.
In the reverse logic, Islam rejects: lies and betrayal, inequality and enslavement, doing evil and causing harm
Whoever does it does not follow the Islam that I believe in, just as he is like the one who does not fast, the one who does not perform Hajj, and the one who does not cite martyrdom, pray, or give alms tax.
And we all know that there are those who pray, steal and curse, and those who pay alms with one hand and bribe with another, and those who fast in form and do not believe in what they say and backbite others, and they are all Muslims before us, and we may consider them adhering to the five pillars of Islam, but we also know that their reckoning is with their Lord.
So why do we not increase the pillars of what the Qur’an mentioned over and over again regarding the importance of honesty, trustworthiness, love, justice and equality?
I add that the numerical statistics in the Holy Qur’an confirm that the remembrance of God Almighty has come 2699 times, and that the most mentioned number in the Qur’an is number one.
Although the testimony that there is no god but God has been mentioned 37 times, and the name of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, 5 times, the prayer has been mentioned 67 times,
Zakat 32 times, fasting 14 times, and Hajj 13 times. And to clarify my point of view, justice has been mentioned 28 times, honesty 153 times, life 145 times, reward and its derivatives 117 times, and forgiveness and its derivatives 234 times. Likewise, God has rejected injustice 200 times in His Noble Qur’an.
I have noticed that the most mentioned moral values in the Qur’an are: honesty, trustworthiness, courage, humility, loyalty, modesty, chastity, forbearance, patience, justice, benevolence, mercy, honoring one’s parents, upholding ties of kinship, honoring one’s neighbor, tolerance, altruism, Cooperation in righteousness and piety
Perhaps what I mentioned and researched makes the reader agree with me that the pillars of Islam are compatible with the growth of human civilization, and do not depend on what the previous ones concluded only, and that it is possible for all mankind, but all religions, to participate in it without sensitivity or intolerance.
